Pupils will watch salmon hatch in reel time

PUPILS WILL WATCH SALMON HATCH IN REEL TIME

Pupils at Adderlane Academy in Prudhoe are preparing to hatch salmon eggs in their classroom after a visit from Tyne Rivers Trust as part of the its Salmon in the Classroom programme.

The Trust uses the lifecycle of the North Atlantic Salmon to connect school children to their local river, learning about fish migration, lifecycles, food chains and healthy river environments.

With a tank set up in the classroom— year three and four pupils will watch the initial lifecycle of the salmon in real time, helping to monitor water temperature within the tank as the eggs hatch into alevin, before a trip to the river bank to release them into river at the fry stage of their lifecycle.

Local health and hygiene company, Essity has funded the Trust to run the project with the school.

Simone Price, Project Officer at Tyne Rivers Trust says: “It’s fantastic to be able to help pupils to learn about the lifecycle of such an important species in a very practical way.

“While the tank is in their classroom, children will have the chance to monitor water temperature which is a really important factor for fish in our rivers and watch the eggs come to life. Once they’ve hatched, we’ll spend some time on the riverbank releasing them back into the river.”

Environmental Specialist at Essity, Joanne Crozier added: “As the second-biggest user of water from the Tyne, what goes on in the river is critically important to our business. We abstract water at the back of our site, use it in our tissue manufacturing process and then return it to the river – cleaner than it was before.

“Essity is a business with strong environmental credentials, and we were keen to work with the trust on this exciting project that will teach local youngsters about the life cycle of the river’s flora and fauna. A second phase of the project also coincides with World Environment Day – which is something we mark across all of our sites globally – and we will be welcoming experts from the trust into the Mill to talk to staff about their work.”

Headteacher at Adderlane Academy, Emma Potts says: “It’s great to see the children engaging in such a hands-on learning experience that really brings the science behind the River Tyne to life.”